Remote access to full-text and CD-ROM databases using the Internet has advantages over a CD-ROM local area network. Topics include speed, document delivery, multiple platforms, technical support, licensing, copyright, and access to graphics. Considerations of duplication of information, platform compatibility, print versus digital media, back…

Describes a study of elementary and secondary school library media specialists in Oklahoma that compared current knowledge of policy to actual practice regarding off-air videotape recording for use in classrooms. Discussion focuses on strong versus weak educational justification and situational vignettes depicting each. Media specialists'…

Examines the evolution of the information services market over the past decade, encompassing both supply and demand. Discusses market barriers, political challenges and critical success factors of the Internet, principal service providers, costs/pricing, intellectual property rights and knowledge management, strategic planning, the intranet,…

Reports a national survey (1994-95) of governing boards and board members of Canadian universities. Outlines the context for the study, methodology, and results concerning the characteristics of governing boards and board members, the work of board members, the role of boards and members, and major differences between university governing boards…

Describes a 1995 study of college freshmen at a Scottish university that examined use of computers, knowledge about information technology, and reasons for not studying computing. Gender differences are discussed and results are compared with earlier studies from 1992, 1989, and 1986. (LRW)

Uses item analysis techniques to compare two multiple-choice test formats for assessing second language students' competence in English structure in terms of mean scores, item difficulty, and item discrimination. Findings reveal that difficulty and discrimination aspects are item-specific rather than format-dependent and items with moderate…

In this study, planning time was manipulated as a variable in a trial administration of a semi-direct oral interaction test. Discourse analytic techniques were used to determine the nature and/or significance of difference in the elicited discourse across two conditions in terms of complexity and accuracy. Findings suggest that planning time may…

Examines relationships which exist internationally between contexts, methods, and impact on institutions of external quality assessments in higher education. Argues that debates about quality assessment are frequently debates about power and change. Case studies of the University of Aalborg (Denmark), Uppsala University (Sweden), and Monash…

Used individual case studies as well as cross-case analysis of five middle-level teachers to uncover their personal practical knowledge and their perceptions of how this knowledge influences their decision making, classroom environment, and interpersonal relationships. Found such overarching themes as role clarity, professional commitment,…

Examined cognitive competencies and motivation in economically advantaged and disadvantaged preschoolers and kindergartners over a two-year period. Found that disadvantaged children had poorer cognitive scores than advantaged children. Cognitive gains were equal after one or two years in school, with socioeconomic status (SES) differences…

Compares educational policy changes in such areas as language of instruction and curriculum during postcolonial transition in Singapore during the 1960s and in Hong Kong during the 1990s. Discusses the extent to which the regional autonomy promised to Hong Kong by China is possible. Contains 32 references. (SV)

Complains that during a time of economic strength, a nation led by a Democratic president is producing a higher-education plan that does nothing to help poor people go to college. Instead, political efforts attempt to reduce educational costs for the predominantly white upper-middle and wealthy classes whose children are already almost certain to…

Studied popularity and aspects of self-esteem between girls evidencing more traditional masculine characteristics and girls with more feminine characteristics. Findings from 166 girls aged 9 to 10 years old reveal girls reporting both traits and behaviors considered traditionally masculine were less popular, had lower self-esteem, and were less…

Investigates whether 19th-century children of immigrants living in ethnic ghettos were less likely to attend school than their peers who lived elsewhere. It considers the sources of the relationship between neighborhood of residence and school attendance in Boston (Massachusetts) and Chicago (Illinois) by examining the structure of their markets…

The eight chapters of this theme issue use quantitative and qualitative methods to explore the nature and nurture of young participants in the mathematics Olympiad from five countries. Parallel studies are presented of winners from China, Taiwan, and the United States, along with descriptions of programs in Japan and Russia. (SLD)